This week was the grand opening of CORE Kitchen in Oakland, CA, a project of Corey Rennell and CORE Foods — one of our longest-tenured clients. We took the opportunity to chat with Corey about how things are going, and how his business is growing.
CORE Foods originally came to BusinssAdvising.org needing help increasing sales and expanding the team. After working with our volunteer advisors, saw substantial growth and were able to add five new jobs. After a couple of years of sustainable growth, Corey began the next phase of the the CORE Foods enterprise — CORE Kitchen. It’s the world’s first produce-only restaurant, and it’s the definition of bootstrapped. Corey and his team even laid the tile themselves. With the launch of CORE Kitchen, Corey added another 7 new jobs, and prioritized hiring from workforce training programs. “They’re an amazing team of people!” Corey told us. “And they all believe in changing the world through healthy food.”
That’s in keeping with his entire social enterprise ethos. CORE Foods is a B-corp, and in both their meal bars and restaurant they serve only 100% organic items. To ensure that produce is building a better food chain, they’re working with lower-income farmers through the Mandela Food Coop in Oakland. And to ensure that produce doesn’t go to waste, they’re also working with the Alameda food bank.
Visit CORE Kitchen >
CORE Foods continues to be all about sustainable business and social impact. So what’s next for Corey and CORE Foods? They’re working to continue growing their packaged food business, and in the coming year hope to expand into catering and food delivery around the Bay Area. Vegetarians won’t have to suffer in silence anymore when it comes to catered lunches at work.
And one last thing, for the new year! if you’re like many of us, you’re coming out of the holidays and thinking about getting into shape and eating healthier. Check out CORE Foods’ CORE Challenge. It’s not a diet, it’s a step-by-step health program with meals, exercises, and other activities to get your 2016 started off right.